Free Weekly Instant Tournament - December 30 - Board 3

Board 3
Opponents vulnerable

♠ K Q 7 2  ♥ K Q 8 2  ♦ Q 10  ♣ Q J 3

I have 15 HCP. Before bridge players started counting points, no one would consider opening a strong notrump with this hand. It has two and half honor tricks, and a strong notrump contains three and half to four. For a while I experimenting with avoiding one-notrump openings with hands like this one. It didn't work out well. But not for the reason you might expect. Opening with one of a minor let the opponents get into the auction too easily. I was losing boards not because I was missing games but because I lost the pre-emptive effect of a one-notrump opening. Paradoxically, it was precisely because my hand wasn't actually worth one notrump (at least not defensively) that it was important to open one notrump anyway and keep the opponents out of the auction.

Having learned my lesson, I upgrade and open with one notrump. Everyone passes. See? I silenced the opponents.

	NORTH Robot ♠ 9 8 4 ♥ A 7 ♦ 9 8 6 ♣ A 10 9 8 5
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ K Q 7 2 ♥ K Q 8 2 ♦ Q 10 ♣ Q J 3

West	North	East	South
Robot	Robot	Robot	Phillip
			1 NT
(All pass)

West leads the spade five. The three is out, so this could be from length or from shortness.

The opponents can take the spade ace and some number of diamonds. If the club king is offside, I need to hope that number is four, else I'm going down.

I play the spade nine from dummy, starting an unblock, since I may want to finesse the seven at some point. I'm not too concerned this will reveal I have good spades. My play could easily be a ruse.

East takes the ace and shifts to the heart jack. The robots never seem to return their partner's suit. And, since their partners seldom lead their best suit, who can blame them? Fortunately, East didn't pick the right suit to shift to. What's the best way to keep him from shifting to diamonds if the club finesse loses?

I could win in dummy, concealing the fact that I have the heart king, then lead a spade to my hand for the club finesse. I'm not sure I care for that line, however. Not only does it give the show away that I have good spades, but it may strip RHO of his last spade, preventing him from shifting back to that suit. Perhaps it's better to win in my hand with the heart king. If West thinks his partner has the queen, he might continue hearts. And the option of returning his partner's suit is still open to him. Winning with the heart king gives him two ways to go wrong instead of one.

I play the heart king, and West plays the nine. I play the club queen--six--five--king. East shifts to the diamond deuce. Oh, well. He found it.

Is the diamond queen or ten more likely to get West to shift to a different suit after winning the diamond? If West doesn't have the jack, the ten is probably better. If he wins with the king, he may think I have ace-jack-ten; if he wins with the ace, he may think I have king-jack ten. Either way there is no future in the suit. If West does have the jack, the queen may work better. If he has ace-jack, for example, he may think I have king-queen-ten and be afraid to return the suit.

I don't have much to go on. It seems like pretty much of a toss-up. But there is one consideration that tips the scales. East may have both the ace and king. Is that possible? This is a best-hand tournament, so he is limited to 15 HCP. Ace of spades, jack of hearts, king of clubs. That's eight HCP. Yes, there is room for the ace-king of diamonds.

I go up with the queen. West plays three. Wow! Did I make the right play for the right reason? Did East really underlead the ace-king?

I have four clubs, three hearts, two spades, and a diamond. Ten tricks. I've lost two, so I have only one loser left. Do I have a squeeze? Since West presumably has the diamond jack, the only possible squeeze is a heart-spade squeeze against East. But it doesn't hurt to play it as a double squeeze anyway in case  I've misread the position. The double threat must be spades, since it's the only suit with an entry

I play a heart to the ace, a club to my jack, and cash the heart queen. West pitches the five of diamonds. I could cash a spade without destroying the squeeze matrix. But there is no reason to. Better to conceal my spade strength.

I play a club to dummy. West pitches the four of diamonds. I've reached this position:

	NORTH Robot ♠ 8 4 ♥ -- ♦ 9 ♣ 8 5
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ K Q 7 ♥ 8 ♦ 10 ♣ --

On the penultimate club, East pitches the diamond three. I have no use for the diamond ten. Dummy's nine works as the diamond threat, so I pitch my diamond. West pitches the spade six. I have now reached the classic double-squeeze position. East holds the heart guard. If West holds the diamond guard, neither opponent can hold spades. Of course, that's not possible. West can hardly hold ace-king-jack of diamonds.

I cash the last club. East pitches the diamond seven. Presumably he has ace-king of diamonds and the heart ten left, leaving West with the diamond jack and three spades. I pitch the heart eight, and West pitches the diamond jack. To my surprise, both opponents follow when I lead a spade from dummy, so my hand is good. Making five.

	NORTH Robot ♠ 9 8 4 ♥ A 7 ♦ 9 8 6 ♣ A 10 9 8 5
WEST Robot ♠ J 10 6 5 ♥ 9 4 ♦ A J 5 4 3 ♣ 6 4		EAST Robot ♠ A 3 ♥ J 10 6 5 3 ♦ K 7 2 ♣ K 7 2
	SOUTH Phillip ♠ K Q 7 2 ♥ K Q 8 2 ♦ Q 10 ♣ Q J 3

Plus 210 is worth 93%.

So West had ace-jack of diamonds and ducked the queen! He thought I had king-queen third and he was hoping his partner had an entry? What entry would that be? I suppose East might have held the club jack. East's diamond deuce was no help, because the robots sometimes lead low from small doubletons.

In the end position, West was still playing me for the diamond king, so he held the wrong suit. East couldn't afford the informative pitch of the diamond king, else West really would be squeezed.

Most declarers who reached the same position I did at trick four chose the diamond ten rather than the queen. West still misread the position. He took the jack and shifted. So either play sufficed to dissuade West from returning the suit. But the queen had the additional merit of winning the trick. There was no way to make five after the ten lost to the jack.